The Ailon are a sapient species indigenous to Ailon who saw military training as a form of religious devotion. They are famous for their military tradition, which dated back to at least 13,000 BBY.

Their most famous military unit, the Ailon Nova Guard, had a military reputation equaled only by such groups as the Mandalorians and the Emperor's Royal Guard. Their belief in rule by the strong led them to be fiercely loyal to the Galactic Empire, though Palpatine and other Humanocentric Imperials held the Ailons in contempt. This would cause the Empire to often hire the Ailon Nova Guard as mercenaries, sending them into battle with full expectation of them to be slaughtered. Such missions were usually described as glorious battles "which only the Nova Guard could perform."